Software Engineer, Networking & OS (R5488)

What you'll do:

• Design and build custom, resilient Layer 2 / Layer 3 network topologies optimized specifically for V-BAT mission profiles, focusing on device isolation, dynamic traffic management, and transmitting traffic across multiple links. 

• Implement networking features directly on embedded Linux operating systems, including custom routing, TUN/TAP interfaces, user-space tunnels, and socket-level applications. 

• Work backward from operator capabilities to build bandwidth-optimized, low-latency communication paths over lossy or constrained radio and satellite links. 

• Write clean, production-grade C, C++, or Python code to build things like software-defined network interfaces, traffic shaping policies, and link failover mechanisms. 

• Partner with software engineers, hardware engineers, and field operators to validate end-to-end network performance in both hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) labs and flight test environments. 

Required qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree with 5+ years of relevant experience, or Master’s with 4+ years, or PhD with 2+ years. 

• Strong proficiency writing software in C, C++, or Python in a Linux environment, with a track record of shipping software that interacts directly with the OS networking stack. 

• Deep understanding of Linux networking fundamentals (netlink, IP route/tables, iptables/nftables, TUN/TAP interfaces, Linux network namespaces, and socket programming). 

• Solid grasp of Layer 2 and Layer 3 network fundamentals, custom routing protocols, VLAN tagging, QoS/traffic management, and VPN/tunneling mechanisms (e.g., OpenVPN, GRE, IPsec, or custom user-space tunnels). 

• Practical experience troubleshooting network degradation using low-level tools (e.g., tcpdump, wireshark, iproute2, iperf) in lossy, high-latency, or bandwidth-constrained environments. 

• Proven track record of successfully shipping products, showcasing the ability to navigate through development cycles, overcome obstacles, and deliver high-quality solutions to meet project deadlines and exceed expectations in a fast-paced environment. 

• Ability to obtain security clearance.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience developing embedded Linux networking applications using build systems like Yocto or OS-level customization tools. 

• Experience working with RF and other hardware engineers to design network protocols and topologies which are tailored for a novel radio network design. 

• Experience architecting network solutions for robotics, autonomous vehicles, aerospace, or edge computing hardware. 

• Familiarity with network security, public key infrastructure (PKI), and cryptographic tunnels in embedded systems.